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Wilhelm II
During World War II, Heer Hauptmann Stefan Brandt of the 8th Infantry Division, is assigned to take command of the personal bodyguard of deposed German Emperor, Wilhelm II at his estate near Utrecht, Netherlands. Following the German invasion of the Netherlands, Nazi authorities are concerned that Allied spies may be planning to assassinate the former monarch. Before the assignment, Brandt had served in Poland were he was wounded by shrapnel. He still has nightmares about it. Upon arriving at Huis Doorn, Brandt meets the deposed Kaiser, who remains deeply depressed over his overthrow in 1918 and over the fact that the German people still blame him for their suffering during and since World War I. Even though the Kaiser's adjutant, Oberst Sigurd von Ilsemann gives Brandt strict orders not to interfere with the female servants, Brandt is immediately drawn into a passionate affair with Mieke de Jong, one of the maids. Mieke soon reveals to Brandt that she is secretly Jewish. Gestapo Inspector Dietrich informs Brandt that the British Secret Service has an agent with a radio in a nearby village. In addition to keeping an eye on the former Kaiser, Brandt is ordered to determine and report the identity of the agent inside the ex-Kaiser's household. Unbeknownst to Brandt, the spy is Mieke, whose radio-bearing handler is the Dutch Reformed pastor of the village. When SS Commander Heinrich Himmler decides to visit with a large SS platoon, Brandt is forced to choose between following orders and protecting Mieke. As his involvement with Mieke continues, Brandt notices a smell of gun oil from her room. He later sees Mieke leaving the residence grounds and follows her. Mieke again visits the pastor and, unaware that Brandt is watching outside a window, tells the pastor that she is prepared to assassinate Himmler as revenge for the SS' murder of her father and husband. The pastor responds that assassinating Himmler is not their mission. The SS then intercepts the pastor’s radio transmissions to Britain. They arrest and mercilessly torture him, demanding the name of the other spy. Shortly afterward, Wilhelm's wife Princess Hermine, who envies her husband's fondness for Mieke, discovers the lovers' affair and notifies Wilhelm. Hermine expects her husband to dismiss Mieke and to have Brandt court-martialed. Wilhelm, however, angrily responds that even though he no longer rules Germany, he will rule his own house. In private, he reveals to the lovers that he fathered illegitimate children before and after marrying his first wife. Saying that he is no hypocrite, the former Kaiser orders the lovers to go about their duties and to be more discreet from now on. When the time comes to have the house searched before Himmler's arrival, Brandt himself searches Mieke's room to protect her ruse. After Himmler's arrival, Brandt learns that the tortured pastor has revealed Mieke's identity as the British agent. He locates her and urges her to flee. She refuses, insisting that she has a duty. Meanwhile, Himmler extends to Wilhelm an invitation from Adolf Hitler to return to his former throne in Berlin. He then meets with Brandt and Dietrich, informing them of the gesture and its intention as a trap to identify and slaughter Germans who support the monarchy's restoration. Hermina is overjoyed at the thought of finally returning to Germany. Wilhelm, troubled by Himmler's boasts about the euthanasia of disabled children, remains unsure of the offer even when Oberst von Ilsemann speaks to him of the Christian values of the Imperial Family and how Wilhelm can become, "a restraining influence." In conversation with Oberst von Ilsemann, Brandt asks whether an officer can serve something other than his country. The Oberst replies, "First you must decide what is your country and if it even still exists." Against orders, Brandt reveals Himmler's plans for the Kaiser's supporters. Although horrified, the Oberst thanks Brandt. Mieke does her duty and reveals to Wilhelm a message from the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Wilhelm is offered political asylum in Great Britain and the throne of a defeated Germany after the war. Wilhelm refuses, having decided that he is finally at peace with the loss of his throne. As the Gestapo closes in on Mieke, Brandt devises an escape plan. Wilhelm, Mieke, and Brandt escape in a van as the former Kaiser pretends to have a heart attack. Brandt kills Dietrich and another SS officer in the process. Deep in the woods, Mieke asks Brandt to flee with her. She fears if he stays, he will be executed for the murders. Brandt, however, insists that he has a duty to Germany and a protective alibi (he brought Wilhelm to hospital, while the spy killed the SS officers and escaped). As Mieke departs, Brandt repeats the marriage proposal that Mieke had earlier refused. This time, she tells Brandt yes and to find her after the war. She disappears into the woods. Some time later, Brandt is seen at a desk in a Berlin office. He is delivered a package, which contains a book of Friedrich Nietzsche's writings that Mieke had shown him. Inside is written a London address. In London, Mieke is seated on a park bench when she is informed that Churchill is ready to see her. Rising, Mieke puts her hand on her belly, revealing that she is pregnant. In Utrecht, Oberst von Ilsemann informs the former Kaiser that Hauptmann Brandt has called from Berlin with wonderful news. Realizing that Mieke has escaped to Britain, Wilhelm is overjoyed. In Brandt's office, an air raid siren sounds. While others evacuate, Brandt remains seated, reading Mieke's book. Awards *Knight of the Black Eagle *Pour le Mérite *Grand Cross of the Iron Cross *Iron Cross 1st Class Gallery Kaiser Wilhelm II (2).jpg Kaiser Wilhelm II (3).jpg Kaiser Wilhelm II and Stefan Brandt.jpg|Kaiser Wilhelm II and Stefan Brandt. Princess Hermine and Kaiser Wilhelm II.jpg|Princess Hermine and Kaiser Wilhelm II. Category:The Exception Category:Movie Characters Category:Imperial German Army Category:Officers Category:Pour le Mérite Winners Category:Iron Cross 1st Class Winners Category:World War One Veterans Category:Living Characters Category:Fictionalised Versions of Real People Category:German Category:Christopher Plummer